While it may be a difficult thing to do, it is important to put together an estate plan so that your family and your business will be protected when you’re gone. An estate plan will allow you to choose who will inherit your assets, who will take care of your children and many other important things. Here are a few reasons to consider putting together an estate plan in Ohio.
Safeguard your children
If something were to happen to you and your spouse, do you know who would be taking care of your kids? In the absence of provisions, your children could end up in child protective services with a court deciding what happens to them. With estate planning, you can choose who will be the guardians of your children in case anything happens to you and your spouse.
Ease the burden on your family
After you’re gone, your family will likely be distressed and grieving. You can help ease the burden on them by planning your own funeral arrangements so they don’t have to.
It isn’t uncommon for families to get torn apart and argue with each other when trying to decide which family member deserves the most money or who should take over the business. You can decide in advance which heirs receive which assets so your family won’t have to debate and squabble over who gets what.
Keep the business running
If you are the owner of a business, having an estate plan will allow you to choose who will succeed you as the owner of that business once you’re gone. With the owner of a business suddenly out of the picture, it is easy for the structure to fall apart. Putting together a plan of who will succeed you and how your employees should operate will help keep the business going and avoid turmoil.
Plan for incapacity
An estate plan can not only prepare for when you die but also take into account what will happen if you become incapacitated. This allows you to make any financial or health care decisions before you end up in a state where you can’t make those decisions for yourself.
An estate plan can be very beneficial in many ways you may not have realized. The sooner you put yours together, the better protected all the things you care about will be. If you wait too long, it could end up being too late.